Halloween: Customs, Recipes & Spells

This book combines excellent scholarship with creativity and a joyful sense of fun. It explores the popular holiday of Halloween as well as the more serious and spiritual side of the pagan sabbat Samhain. You don't have to be a pagan to enjoy this book because it has many, many lighthearted and clever ideas that will entertain even if Halloween is purely a fun night of make-believe for you. Fortunately it takes Samhain seriously enough to be satisfactory to pagans who require a bit more substance in this holiday's revels. Interspersed with seasonal artwork the book starts out with a thorough look at Samhain and Halloween history. Customs and traditions such as Jack-o-lanterns, trick-or-treating, bonfires, among others are discussed. show more Superstitions and many Halloween symbols are detailed. The chapter on divination is informative and lots of fun. Colorful kitchen witchery offers up some delicious recipes that are wonderful for parties or just for seasonal family fare. A meaningful and enjoyable section on Halloween Magick shares ideas for spells, blessings, charms, and ritual. An important aspect of Samhain, that of honoring the dead, is discussed with helpful ideas for adding meaning and respectful reflection. Many delightful poems from various sources grace the opening chapter pages and they in turn can be used when crafting one's own sabbat rituals.
This book does not tippy-toe around and pretend to be a book that won't offend anyone. It is a book by a Wiccan for other Wiccans but as always, the door is open, step through and enjoy as you will. show less

Every year, this book gets me excited for another season of haunting and slimy pumpkin guts. I love that this book dives deep into the haunting history of Halloween. Not only is there a history lesson that MAKES you want to pay attention, there are also crafts, games, recipes, and other traditions.

This book had very interesting points in it. I really enjoyed learning where Halloween came from in history. The different celebrations and traditions are fascinating. Halloween is my favorite holiday of the year and all this information has increased my love of it. I will surely have to read more of Silver's works!

I hate this author but there was a good healing spell I used in this that worked.

Silver gets a lot of bad reviews but she is what I started out with. For some reason she's easier to find than most of the other writers. I found this book in my mentor's shop and fell in love with it. Halloween/Samhain is my favorite holiday ever but this is the only book I have on it. I'm hoping to find more books but in the meantime I loved this book because it is about my favorite holiday.

Excellent history of halloween